1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a camera in which subject light is formed on a solid state imaging device so that an image signal is created.
2. Description of the Related Art
Hitherto, such a type of camera that photography is performed on a silver halide film comes into wide use. And recently, in addition to such a type of camera, there rapidly comes into wide use a digital camera in which a subject is image-formed on a solid state imaging device such as a CCD imaging device or a CMOS imaging device to create an image signal.
Also in such a digital camera, there is strongly needed an improvement of a portability as well as an improvement of a photographic efficiency. There is known such a type of digital camera that in order that a desired view angle of photography is available through varying a focal length and the camera is convenient to carry about, at the time of non-photography a lens barrel, which incorporates thereinto an image taking lens constituted of a plurality of lens groups, is collapsed into a cover member of the camera so that the respective lengths among the plurality of lens groups constituting the image taking lens are under lengths of the minimum requirements for photography, and at the time of photography the lens barrel is extended from the cover member of the camera so that the respective lengths among the plurality of lens groups are lengths necessary for photography (cf. Japanese Patent Application Laid Open Gazette TokuKai Hei. 5-34769).
Hitherto, in a digital camera having the above-mentioned lens barrel, it is attempted to provide thinness of the lens structure by collapsing an image taking lens so as to narrow intervals between ones arranged on an optical axis, for example, lens groups, light quantity control members such as a shutter and an aperture, and a solid state imaging device, as far as possible.
However, there is a limit as to providing thinness through narrowing intervals between ones arranged on an optical axis as far as possible.